Process of making fertilizer.



, usual cost of. the alkaline earth is less than UNITED STATES PATENT: o FioE :mmsn. comma, 01 nasnvnu,

RROGESS or assume FERTILIZER.

R0 Drawing.

To all whom 'itmay concern:

Be it known that I, Janus H. CONNOR, a citizen of the United States, residing at Nashville, in the county of Davidson and State of Tennessee, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Processes of Making Fertilizer, of which the following is .a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in the process of extracting phosphoric acid from phosphate rock, phosphate pebbles, bone phosphate, lime and bones, or other substances containing phosphoric acid that are insoluble without the use of acid.

My method is further applicable-to'those low grade phosphate rocks which contain sandy matter, or dirt, and which are with difficulty marketable or actually unsalable.

)3 using an admixture of alkali (as sodium 01' potassium hydroxide or carbonates) and alkaline earth (as calcium, magnesium or barium hydroxide) the process of renden ing the phosphates available is cheapenedover the use of an alkali, alone, since the that of the alkalies. That is, caustic lime costs less than caustic soda or caustic potash.

A distinct advantage in the use of caustic or quicklime, is that the silica, or sand which is contained in the class of phosphate rocks above mentioned, is attacked by the lime and fused into a. silicate of lime, or slag, at the temperature employed and thus practically leaves the phosphate rock free to be attacked by the caustic soda, whereas if no lime were used, an equivalent amount of caustic soda. or of potash would be required to eliminate the sandin the form of sodium or potassium silicates, thus materially increasing the cost byvthe difi'erence in prices between lime and caustic soda or potassa.

In carrying out my invention'I take the phosphate rock or other substances containing insoluble phosphoric acid and crush or grind it so that the same will a sixteen hole mesh screen to the inch, or finer if desired, to be readily acted upon say,

one thousand five hundred and twenty-five,

' pounds of phosphate rock or other like substances ashhe'reinbefore noted, two hundred and seventy-five pounds of an alkali, assodium hydroxid,and two hundred pounds of valkaline earth, as calcium oxid, or quicklime. I \Vater is then added and mixed until pass through Specification bf sewers Pawnf. Patented Aug, 24, 1909. Application .firea' October 14, 1908. Serial an. 457,63.

furnace 'or retortwhich has been previously charged with either coal, wood, coke, oil, or

any combustible matter that will produce heat, running from 1500 to 2000 Fahrenheit, theadmixture remaining in the said furnace or. retort from one hour to one hour and thirty minutes, when the phosphoric acid will become soluble. The manner in which the chemical reactions occur may be represented asfollows.

supposingr a silicious or sandy variety of phosphate rock or about 69% of bone phosphate is acted upon (la P O ZSiO, H,() 2NaOH Ca() silicious phosphate rock caustic soda quick-lime Cal la l?,O 2CaS1O 2H O.

di-calcium-disocalcium water dium diphosphate silicate The dicalcium-disodium diphosphate or calcium-sodium phosphate represents a sub-. v stitution compound, in which the monatomic element, sodium, substitutes hydrogen in the dicalcium 2CaI-IPO,. 4

The caustic soda and the quick-lime are slightly in excess of theoretical proportions, butnot materially so. In practice we should vary the proportions to conform to the quality of the-phosphate rocks upon whlch we should operate. For lower and sandier grades the amount of quick-lime would be increased, in order to remove the silica from the field and give the caustic soda freer access to the calcium phosphate asit exists in the rocks.

' I have found good-results from mixtures of rock, sand etc., soda, and lime as follows:

Rock, 4 Soda, Lime. 1 3cm i a g as 5 a a u 25 i 4 cc 9 a 14 3 (C 3 C 61 a 11 a u I thus secure a concentratedcproduct rich in available phosphoric acid, which, after being ground into .a pulverulent condition, ,Can be distributed by drills with facility, o r it can be packed for the market without further treatment. Furthermore, the 'soluble superphosphate and free phosphoric acid contained in the residuum are not liable to revert into their insoluble condition.

phosphate (la. .H. ;P,O or.

I -claim n heat until the phosphoric acid becomes ivail- 16 The herein described method'of producable. I ing a phosphate, which consists in reducing In testimony (whereof I hereunto afiix my filze parts ofpihosphajte rock oil calculm phossignature in presence of two witnesses. patetothe ormoa ower,a in one part of caustic soda. and two parts of i uick JAMES B' lime and mix inwater until the same assumes Witnesses: the consistency of thick mud, and finally GILBERT LACKEY, subjecting this mixture to a high degree of LYTTON TAYLOR. 

